Thursday, 12 January 2012

Kale is considered to be closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms. The species Brassica oleracea contains a wide array of vegetables including broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprouts.

Kale can provide you with some special cholesterol-lowering benefits if you will cook it by steaming. Raw kale still has cholesterol-lowering ability--just not as much.
Kale's risk-lowering benefits for cancer have recently been extended to at least five different types of cancer. These types include cancer of the bladder, breast, colon, ovary, and prostate. Kale is now recognized as providing comprehensive support for the body's detoxification system. Researchers can now identify over 45 different flavonoids that combine both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits in way that gives kale a leading dietary role with respect to avoidance of chronic inflammation and oxidative stress.

I love it steamed, but I always try to steam it for no more than 5/10 minutes as I like them still a bit crunchy. Sometimes I also stir-fry them gently after the steam for few minutes with some garlic and olive oil to add some flavor.

Sunday, 8 January 2012

Sweet potato is a large, starchy, sweet-tasting, tuberous root.
The young leaves and shoots are sometimes eaten as greens. Sweet potato is only distantly related to the potato. Although the softer, orange variety is often called a yam in parts of North America, the sweet potato is botanically very distinct from the other vegetable called a yam, which is native to Africa and Asia.
The edible tuberous root is long and tapered, with a smooth skin whose color ranges between purple, red, brown, and beige. Its flesh ranges from beige through yellow, orange, and purple.

Orange-fleshed sweet potatoes may be one of nature's unsurpassed sources of beta-carotene. Several recent studies have shown the superior ability of sweet potatoes to raise our blood levels of vitamin A. This benefit may be particularly true for children. Sweet potatoes are not always orange-fleshed on the inside but can also be a spectacular purple color.
It's important to have some fat in your sweet potato-containing meals if you want to enjoy the full beta-carotene benefits of this root vegetable. Recent research has shown that a minimum of 3-5 grams of fat per meal significantly increases our uptake of beta-carotene from sweet potatoes. Of course, this minimal amount of fat can be very easy to include.
Besides beta carotene, sweet potatoes are rich in complex carbohydrates, dietary fiber, simple starches, vitamin C, and vitamin B6.

I love it baked or steamed, it's actually very different from potatoes, it taste more like a squash or a pumpkin.

Tuesday, 3 January 2012

Michael Pollan, one of the best-known names in food-related issues, offers a guide about health and food. Food Rules: An Eater's Manual is a set of memorable ideas for eating wisely. Many of them are drawn from a variety of ethnic or cultural traditions. Whether at the supermarket or an all-you-can-eat buffet, this handy, pocket-size resource is for people who would like to become more mindful of what they are eating.

Pollan is the author of In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto, The Omnivore's Dilemma and The Botany of Desire. - Book Passage

Michael Pollan is the author of The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, a New York Times bestseller. His previous books include The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World (2001); A Place of My Own (1997); and Second Nature (1991). A contributing writer to The New York Times Magazine, Pollan is the recipient of numerous journalistic awards, including the James Beard Award for best magazine series in 2003 and the Reuters-I.U.C.N. 2000 Global Award for Environmental Journalism.

Pollan served for many years as executive editor of Harper's Magazine and is now the Knight Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at UC Berkeley. His articles have been anthologized in Best American Science Writing 2004, Best American Essays 2003, and the Norton Book of Nature Writing.

Best-selling author Michael Pollan explains how food marketers have turned his critiques (like don't eat anything with more than five ingredients) into another way to sell consumers more food. His new rule of thumb? "Don't eat any foods you've ever seen advertised on television."